User configurable alerts for ATM transactions

ABSTRACT

A method, system and computer program product for enabling user-customization of an ATM display/receipt for a transaction carried out at an automated teller machine (ATM). The customer/user of the ATM creates/selects specific alerts to be outputted during subsequent ATM transactions. The alerts/notices are linked to the customer account. During subsequent access to the user&#39;s account via an ATM, the pre-selected alert/notice is displayed to the user or printed on the transaction receipt.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to automatic teller machines(ATMs) and specifically to client transactions on ATMs. Still moreparticularly, the present invention relates to a method and system forenhancing customer transactions at ATMs.

2. Description of the Related Art

Automated teller machines (“ATM”) are well known and widely utilized inthe banking industry. ATMs are utilized by customers to carry outbanking transactions, such as cash dispensing, receipt of deposits,transfer of funds between accounts, and account balance inquiries. Thetype of banking transactions a customer can carry out are determined byhardware and programming capabilities of the particular ATM as well asthe support provided by the banking institution's computer system.

Today, virtually all banking institutions offer customers the ability toconduct a limited number of electronic transactions either from a localATM located on-site at the institution's branch office, or from a remoteATM of an affiliated institution. When these transactions are completed,ATMs typically provide customers with a printed receipt indicating theparticulars of the transactions conducted at the machine.

The information printed on current ATM receipts is very limited. Forexample, with some ATMs, the customer's receipt may only provide thedate of the transaction, the amount of the transaction, and perhaps anending balance for the corresponding account. Customers today tend tohave a bit more savvy and often desire to have more information than isprovided by current ATMs. Each customer also has different needs.

With conventional ATMs, customers have to go into the bankinginstitution or access their backing accounts/record online or via anautomated phone service. The present invention realizes that eachcustomer is unique and has specific alerts that he/she may desire toreceive during completion of an ATM transaction. The present inventionalso recognizes that it would be desirable to enable a customer toidentify/select and receive specific alerts, which the customer wishesto be provided during completion of an ATM transaction. These and otherbenefits are provided by the invention described herein.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Disclosed is a method, system and computer program product for enablinguser-customization of an alert received from an automated teller machine(ATM) during an ATM transaction. The customer/user of the ATM is able tocreate/customize specific alerts that the customer wishes to receivewhen the customer utilizes an ATM. These alerts may be printed on thescreen or they may be printed on the transaction receipt.

The user is provided with an avenue for accessing his banking accountand selecting from a laundry list of available alerts that are to beoutputted following an ATM transaction. Access to the user account maybe via a telephone service of via online (Internet) connection. Thetelephone access may be automated or assisted. Irrespective of themethod of access, the customer is provided with the list from which thecustomer selects alerts for output during ATM transactions. The bankinginstitution links the selected alerts to the customer's ATM account(i.e., database of customer accounts maintained by the bankinginstitution).

In one implementation, the user is able to adjust the selection ofwhether an alert is printed on a transaction receipt. Since the bankinginstitution maintains specific proprietary ATMs, the institution mayprogram the alert feature into those ATMs and ATMs of partnerinstitutions that share this functionality.

The above as well as additional objectives, features, and advantages ofthe present invention will become apparent in the following detailedwritten description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention itself, as well as a preferred mode of use, furtherobjects, and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference tothe following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment whenread in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1A is a schematic view of an ATM (automated teller machine)network, within which the features of the invention may advantageouslybe implemented;

FIG. 1B is a block diagram representing an exemplary embodiment of anATM with which the added display/print of pre-selected customer alertsmay be provided;

FIGS. 2A-2C are block diagrams of the display scenes of an interface ofthe ATM of FIG. 2 according to exemplary embodiments of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary user interface for online selection ofATM display/print options by a customer in accordance with oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating the process of customer-selection ofdisplay/print alerts utilizing the user interface of FIG. 3 inaccordance with one implementation of the invention; and

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating user transactions at the ATM andautomated display/print of supplemental, customer-desired alerts inaccordance with one embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENT

The present invention provides a method, system and computer programproduct that enables user-customization of an alert received by a userduring a transaction at an automated teller machine (ATM). Thecustomer/user of the ATM creates specific alerts that the customerwishes to receive when the customer utilizes an ATM. These alerts arethen provided to the customer when the customer later utilizes an ATM.

Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 1A, there isillustrated a schematic of ATM network 100. ATM network 100 includesbackground/supporting network to which is connected a plurality of ATMs,of which exemplary local ATM 120 and remote ATM 122 are illustrated.Local ATM 120 is connected to a computer system 110 of a home bank(referred to hereinafter as home bank computer system (HBCS) 110).

Home bank computer system 110 is the computer system that is operated bythe bank or other institution which has primary responsibility for theATMs 120. Home bank computer system 110 is connected to one or more oflocal ATMs 120 through wide area network (WAN)/intranet 115. In theillustrative embodiment, local ATM 120 is connected to HBCS 110 via alocal area network (LAN) 115. However, it is understood that the ATM maybe connected to HBCS via a direct connection. Intranet/WAN 115 ispreferably a local or proprietary network that provides communicationbetween the computer system 110 and the ATMs 120 using messages in atransmission format, such as the transmission control protocol/internetprotocol (“TCP/IP”) format. The messages sent through intranet 115 maybe sent in an encrypted or unencrypted form depending on the nature ofthe system and the security needs of the home bank or ATM 120.

HBCS 110 is illustrated connected to an ATM server 130, which has anassociated customer account database 135. Account database 135 may bethe central account database for all customer data (i.e., not just ATMrelated data) while ATM server 130 may be a central server of the bankthat also supports the ATM capabilities and transactions inc addition tonormal banking transactions and general customer account profiles.Alternatively, account database 135 may be a specialized database atwhich ATM-specific information for each customer's ATM capabilities andtransactions are stored.

According to the illustrative embodiment, ATM server 130 is connected toa wide area network 140 (or data network (DNET)). In some embodiments ofthe invention the wide area network 140 is the Internet, while in otherembodiments, other types of WANs/DNETs may be utilized. WAN 140 maycommunicate data/messages via TCP/IP between numerous computer systems(and/or servers) connected to the wide area network. From theperspective of a home bank, ATM server 130 and HBCS 110 represent localsystems in the ATM network. However, by utilization of WAN 140, localsystems may be expanded to connect to remote systems that include ATMremote server 150. Remote server 150 may be of another banking/financialinstitution that provides ATM services in a location or at ATM machinesthat are not owned/operated/controlled by the home bank. Thus, remoteserver 150 supports a remote ATM network 155 to which remote ATM 122 isconnected.

ATM 120 is an intelligent computer-based machine that is connected to abanking/finance institution that supports customer access to funds andother financial/banking information, as described below. A key featureof the invention is the ability of a customer/ATM user to configure hisaccount to provide specific alerts during ATM transactions.

As illustrated by FIG. 1A, customer access to the customer's account isprovided in one of several different methods. Thus, customer setup 105is completed via customer interfacing with the banking system homecomputer 110 utilizing a telephone connection, a branch office clerkand/or an online network connection. Telephone connection occurs via atelephone interface set up through a public switch telephone network(PSTN) 106, by which the customer is able to call into a specialautomated line (e.g., 1-800 banking number) and follow voice prompts toset up specific alerts during ATM transactions. The telephone access maybe automated or assisted. Alternatively, the customer simply goes into abranch office at which branch office personnel, such as branch clerk 107directly enters the requested customer alerts into the bank's computingsystem. Finally, the customer may utilize a computer to connect onlineto HBCS 110 via a LAN/WAN 108 and set up and select the ATM alerts. Thislater method is further described below and illustrated by other figurespresented herewith.

Notably, in one embodiment, the customer is provided with selectablealerts at ATM 120 eliminating the need for the user to access his/heraccount via online or telephone connection. Restrictions on this methodmay be provided for security reasons. These restrictions may includeenabling ATM selections at only ATMs physically located in or at abranch office of the bank at which the user's account exists.Irrespective of the method of selection, later completion of an ATMtransaction by the customer automatically triggers the selected alertsto be displayed on the ATM screen, printed on the ATM receipt, oraudibly relayed to the customer.

FIG. 1B illustrates interconnected components that make up the localATMs 120 illustrated within FIG. 1A. Notably, remote ATM 122 may besimilarly configured to local ATM 120, but not necessarily so. ATMsproduced by different manufacturers may differ in key placement andnumber of keys, key legends, screen size, etc. However, given the trendtowards standardization of these features to increase user comfort withusing “remote” ATMs, the description herein assumes that the ATMs havesimilar hardware and software components and exhibit similarfunctionality. Description of ATM 120 is thus generally applicable toeach ATM illustrated, unless a specific reference to remote ATM 122 ismade.

With specific reference to FIG. 1B, there is displayed a schematic viewof components of ATM 120 utilized in connection with one exemplaryembodiment. ATM 120 includes a graphical user interface (GUI) 125, acard reader 160, a keypad 128, cash dispenser (with dispenser slot) 165,depository device (with deposit slot) 175. Additionally, ATM 120includes a processor 170, receipt printer 180, a security camera 185,and network interface device 190. Each of the devices is operativelyconnected to an internal control bus 195 by which theintercommunications among the various devices are completed.

In the illustrative embodiment, GUI 125 includes a touch screen 127 (aswell as a display screen), which serves as an input/output (I/O) devicefor communicating with a user of the machine. As an input device, touchscreen 127 receives input from the user while the user is interactingwith the ATM. Alternate embodiments may include other types and/oradditional I/O devices, such as audio speakers. In other embodimentsalso, fewer or more functional devices may be utilized. It should befurther understood that while the described embodiment is of an ATM, theprinciples may be employed in other types of customer-accessibletransaction machines that may not necessarily carry out bankingtransactions (e.g., ticket issuing machines for an electronic vendor).

For functional operation, ATM 120 includes several software programsthat are executable therein, including software for displaying thevarious screens by which information is visually relayed to the user andsoftware for connecting to a host computer system to initiate securitychecks (e.g., request for a pin number) when the user enters his ATMcard into the card reader slot. Other software code is provided for ahost of other functions including managing security and printingreceipts following termination of a user transaction. Those skilled inthe art understand that the invention necessarily includes a fullyfunctioning ATM with at least the basic ATM features described herein.

As described above, ATM 120 may be physically co-located with the ATM'sbanking institution (HBCS 110), or may be remotely located with respectthereto. In operation, ATM 120 serves as an interface between a user(banking customer) and the ATM network to receive input from the userand to provide necessary output (and funds, when necessary) to the user.ATM 120 receives appropriate associated PIN information and transactioninformation from the user. This information is passed to the HBCS 110for verification and processing, respectively.

For transactions at remote ATM 122, the associated/background computersystem identifies the home bank from the information retrieved from theuser's ATM card, and passes the necessary transaction informationentered by the user to the appropriate HBCS 110 (several may beconnected via WAN 140). HBCS 110 verifies the user's account data andthen forwards an authorization message (either a deny transactionmessage or proceed with transaction message, for example) to the remoteATM 122. Based on the authorization received, the remote ATM 122provides customized alerts and funds, if requested, to the user.

Turning now to FIG. 2, there is illustrated a flow chart of the processby which a user customizes his account for ATM-specific alerts,according to one embodiment of the invention. The flow chart is betterunderstood by reference to FIG. 3, which illustrates a GUI (web browser)of an online customer account at the home bank computer system 110.

As described above, customers are provided with several avenues foraccessing their account and a laundry list of available ATM-specificalerts from which the customer selects alerts to receive during an ATMtransaction. The exemplary embodiment provided herein describes theonline method. However, the features described are applicableirrespective of the method of accessing and customizing the alertslinked to customer's account. Notably also, while the invention isdescribed with specific reference to alerts delivered during an ATMtransaction, the invention may be implemented with a different userinterface than the ATM. Thus, the interface within which the alert isprovided may be a web interface or interface accessed via phone ordownloaded to a phone. With these alternate embodiments, the alerts maybe provided independently of a user accessing an ATM machine.

The flow chart of FIG. 2 begins at block 202 with the customer accessinghis/her account at the URL (universal resource locator) of the bankinginstitution's computer/server. The customer is provided, at block 203,with the list of customer selectable alerts for print, audible output,and/or display during ATM transactions.

An exemplary embodiment of a user interface (preferably a browser GUI)by which the customer selects his desired ATM alerts via online accessto the customer's account profile is provided by FIG. 3. GUI 300includes several of the standards browser-styled items, e.g., top-levelmenu items 305 and search items 315. Additionally, GUI 300 includes bankidentification 302, customer identification 320 and selections bar 310of available bank features.

Illustrated by shaded block within selections bar 310 is ATMalert-customization feature 312. When selected by the customer, anassociated ATM customization window 330 opens within GUI 300. Asillustrated, ATM customization window 330 includes a list of userselectable alerts 340 each selected by the user placing a check within aselection box adjacent to the selectable alert. Specific ones ofselectable alerts include (1) withdrawals over a specific amount, (2)scheduled automatic payment adjustment, (3) customer service emails, (4)pending transactions, (5) specific check numbers cashed and (6) remindernotes.

“Scheduled automatic payments” enables the user to be alerted of amountsof money that are to be automatically withdrawn from the account withina predefined period of days following the transaction (e.g., 3 days).This feature may be time-limited, e.g., payments scheduled within 3 daysof the withdrawal. Thus, as illustrated, a specific time period may beentered into a day counter 343 by the customer when the option forreceipt of an alert for an automatic payment adjustment isselected/checked. This provides the user with a more accurate picture ofhis/her available balance. In practical implementation, this featureprevents a user from withdrawing more funds than he has available tocover pending payments, and prevents an overdraft on the account.

“Customer service emails” enables HBCS-transmitted emails to bedisplayed to a customer who is expecting email communication from a bankrepresentative. For example, during disputes regarding a postedtransaction, customer service personnel occasionally provides onlinecustomers with an email response, and this feature of the inventionenables an alert that an email has been received from the HBCS 110 to begiven to the customer during the ATM transaction. “Pending transactions”share similarities with the scheduled automatic payments. Adeposit/withdrawal by a co-user of the account or posting of a check maystill be pending and not reflected on the current balance shown to theuser. Finally, “reminder alerts” represents actual alerts the user typesinto an alert entry box 342 to display/print out when the user next goesto the ATM. An example is a reminder to pay a bill when the user knowsthat he/she will need additional cash for that payment during a nexttrip to the ATM.

Below the list of selectable alerts, are several output options 350 bywhich the user indicates whether the selected alerts are to be printedor displayed and/or audibly relayed. An alternative embodiment enables afirst (confidential) alert to be linked by the customer for printingwhile a second (un-confidential) alert is linked for display or audibleoutput. The alert may also be outputted in a combination of theavailable output methods, including printed, and display, and/or audiblealert.

ATM customization window 330 includes several navigation buttons,including “next” button 345 to display/scroll additional availableoptions, “save” button 370 to store the selections made by the customer,and “agree’ button 360 by which the customer indicates agreement withthe disclaimer presented within disclaimer bar 355.

Additionally, several notices are shown within ATM customization window330. A first notice at the base of the screen explains a limitation onthe possible customer selections. In this exemplary embodiment, theoptions are available only at ATMs of the banking institution ofaffiliated/partner banks. A second notice at the top of the screen,informs the customer that the customer may select up to five of thedisplayed alerts.

The limit on the number of available alerts is imposed in this exemplaryembodiment to prevent a user selecting to receive too many alerts duringan ATM transaction, which restriction may be imposed due to availablebandwidth and/or other practical reasons. For example, the displayscreen of the ATM has a limited display area and the receipt rolls arealso limited in size (with conventional ATMs). Requesting too manyalerts would lead to a cumbersome ATM interaction and would prove costlyif each customer desired to print entire laundry lists of alerts on thelimited rolls of receipt paper each machine can hold. Other securityrelated or practical reasons may limit the amount or type of alerts thata user may select from customization window 330.

Returning to the process flow of FIG. 2, at block 204, the customerselects his/her desired ATM customization alerts. Notably, in oneimplementation, this selection may also include selecting whether thealert format is for display only, print only, audible relay only, orsome combination of the two or three forms of output. The server of thebanking institution updates the customer's ATM customization alerts atblock 206 and then stores the updates in the customer account (at thedatabase of customer accounts maintained by the banking institution) atblock 208.

Turning now to the flow chart of FIG. 5 and illustrated GUIs of FIGS.4A-4C, actual ATM transactions and output of pre-selected customizationalerts are illustrated. The process begins at block 502 at which thecustomer enters his card and pin at the ATM. A determination is made atblock 504 whether the entered pin is correct, and if not, the user isrefused access to the customer account and a security process isinitiated as shown at block 506.

Once a correct pin is entered, however, the customer account profile isretrieved at block 508, and access to the customer account linked to thecard is provided to complete the user transactions, as indicted at block510. The software of the ATM displays the information transmitted to iton the display monitor of the ATM. The HBCS checks the customer accountat block 512 to determine whether special customization alerts have beenpre-selected by the customer. When no alerts have been selected, thestandard ATM display is provided and a receipt with the standardinformation is printed at completion of the transaction, as shown atblock 514.

However, when the customer has pre-selected to receive one or morealerts, the standard ATM display and/or receipt are enhanced with thealerts selected by the customer for display and/or printing, as shown atblock 516. The alerts may be displayed only after the transaction iscompleted, or if print-only option was selected by the customer, thealert is not displayed but printed on the receipt generated for thetransaction. The user then logs off the customer account and removes theATM card as shown at block 518.

In one implementation, the user is provided the option of selectingwhich alerts to print when the ATM cash transaction is completed. Theuser may then decide whether to print the alert on the transactionreceipt. Since the banking institution maintains specific proprietaryATMs, the institution may program this feature into their ATMs and ATMsof other institutions that share the user-customized display and/orreceipt printing functionality.

With the above features of the invention, a user of an ATM is able tocreate specific ATM alerts for actions that the user wished to be awareof or other alerts the user wishes to receive during subsequent visitsto an ATM. FIGS. 4A-4B illustrates exemplary screens displayed to theuser at the ATM. Screen 125 of FIG. 4A is an ATM screen displaying asummary of the current transaction and account balance. Below thisinformation is the prompt for the user to view customized alerts. In oneimplementation, this prompt is triggered to appear only when there arecustomized alerts pre-selected by the user. When the user selects no,the GUI screen changes to the print screen (FIG. 4C) at which the useris then prompted whether he wishes to also print the customized alerts.This screen is valuable for situations in which the user does not wishthe alert provided on the screen to be viewed by the built-in camera orsomeone standing immediately behind him/her, who may have a view (orpartial view) of the screen.

When the user selects yes from the main screen (FIG. 4A), the screen ofFIG. 4B is displayed with the list of customized alerts. From thisscreen, the user is prompted whether to print the customized alerts withthe receipt of the transaction. This enables the user to complete thetransaction, then view the customizable alerts without having to printthese alerts on the transaction receipt. When the alert is a remindernote, for example, it may be sufficient for the user to receive thereminder without having the reminder printed on his transaction receipt.

As explained above, one implementation of this feature allows a check ofthe primary account for scheduled direct/electronic payments (e.g.,through bill pay service) on the customer's account. That is, inaddition to the current balance, the customer also receives an alertwith the total or list of automatic payments schedule to be taken fromthe account so the customer knows the “real” balance of disposable fundsin his/her account. Other information that may be provided via thealerts includes: single withdrawals over a specific amount; electronicdeposits; paycheck deposits; specific check numbers cached; deposit atan ATM of personal checks; etc.

As a final matter, it is important that while an illustrative embodimentof the present invention has been, and will continue to be, described inthe context of a fully functional computer system with installedmanagement software, those skilled in the art will appreciate that thesoftware aspects of an illustrative embodiment of the present inventionare capable of being distributed as a program product in a variety offorms, and that an illustrative embodiment of the present inventionapplies equally regardless of the particular type of signal bearingmedia used to actually carry out the distribution. Examples of signalbearing media include recordable type media such as floppy disks, harddisk drives, CD ROMs, and transmission type media such as digital andanalogue communication links.

While the invention has been particularly shown and described withreference to a preferred embodiment, it will be understood by thoseskilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.For example, while the invention is described with specific reference toalerts delivered during an ATM transaction, the invention may beimplemented with a different user interface than the ATM. Thus, theinterface within which the alert is provided may be a web interface orinterface accessed via phone or downloaded to a phone. Irrespective ofthe interface selected, the alerts can be provided independently of theuser accessing an ATM machine.

1. In a first computer device, a method comprising: linking an alert toan occurrence of a specific activity within a customer account, whichaccount is accessible via a network-connected device, wherein saidlinking further comprises: displaying a user interface that includes oneor more alerts and one or more activities that may be linked to the oneor more alerts; receiving, via the user interface, a selection of one ormore different alerts to link to one or more activities that may occurwithin the customer account, wherein each alert identifies one or moreof the activities, wherein when multiple different activities areassociated with one or more alerts, the one or more alerts are forwardedto the network-connected device to signal the occurrence of the multipledifferent activities; storing the selected one or more alerts along withinformation identifying the one or more activities to which the alert islinked, wherein said storing associates the alert and information withthe customer account; enabling selection of characteristics to associatewith the alert, including whether the alert is confidential ornon-confidential, wherein a method of outputting the alert at thenetwork-connected device is affected by a confidentiality characteristicassociated with the alert; and enabling selection of a method and anoutput format for outputting the alert at the network-connected device,said format selected from one or more of: (1) a display format whereinthe alert is displayed on the monitor of the network-connected device;(2) a print format wherein the alert is printed on a transaction receiptgenerated at the network-connected device; and (3) an audible relayformat wherein the alert is audibly outputted on a speaker of thenetwork-connected devices; monitoring for the activity within saidcustomer account that is related to the alert selected by the customer;and in response to the occurrence of the activity, automaticallyforwarding the alert for outputting at the network-connected deviceduring a subsequent access of said customer account via thenetwork-connected device, wherein the alert is forwarded for outputtingutilizing an output mechanism of the network-connected device to signalthe occurrence of the activity within said customer account.